Considering an upgrade...

[Alec]

to a 42" full HD TV. Thing is, i havent had my current telly for long, and im pretty happy with it. Therefore, I would only make the change if i could enjoy Bluray more, and standard definition telly just as much. I appreciate that in theory SD would look worse and Bluray better, but what about the reality?

I like plasmas but wouldnt rule out looking at LCDs. I sit 9/10 feet from the screen. I'd hope to spend around £800.

 

[Anonymous]

I'd wait until the new HD freeview TV's are in the market. Some time next year I've heard.

 

[Alec]

Good thinking, but they might be a bit pricey initially.

 

[Dave_]

aldfort:I'd wait until the new HD freeview TV's are in the market. Some time next year I've heard.I disagree,Al already has Sky HD and Freeview HD wont offer anything he cant already get,except possibly less tv for his money as he'll be paying a premium for an HD terrestrial tuner thats not needed..

 

[Alec]

daveh75:aldfort:I'd wait until the new HD freeview TV's are in the market. Some time next year I've heard.I disagree,Al already has Sky HD and Freeview HD wont offer anything he cant already get,except possibly less tv for his money as he'll be paying a premium for an HD terrestrial tuner thats not needed..

Good point well made. I seem to be a bit slower than usual today!

 

[Anonymous]

daveh75:aldfort:I'd wait until the new HD freeview TV's are in the market. Some time next year I've heard.I disagree,Al already has Sky HD and Freeview HD wont offer anything he cant already get,except possibly less tv for his money as he'll be paying a premium for an HD terrestrial tuner thats not needed..

Good point Dave. I suppose I hate buying gear to find it went out of date a month later. Plus I have a similar siruation myself at the moment. Perhaps Al could flog me his old telly if he gets a new one LOL?

 

[Alec]

But if anyone has any actual thought on me actual questions...?

Another question could be "am i thinking of spending enough to achieve what i want, as laid out in my original post"?

 

[Anonymous]

the obvious plasma would be a panasonic 42g10 , about £700 , there are many lcds at that price , i currently have a samsung 46b650 lcd, which is a very nice tv once its calibrated , although im changing for a 46inch g10 next week , having always preferred plasma , theres very little in it for me now , i think their both great ..

 

[Alec]

Thanks maxflinn.

 

[Alec]

And i thougfht this would be a popular one.

EDIT - mind, it opens up the choice more if i look at HD ready sets too. This makes me worry tho, that it wouldnt show blurays to their best. But would the biggest improvement come from the full hd, or the 42 inches...?

 

[Anonymous]

its hard to advise whats best for someone , im not even 100% sure i want a plasma , although ill probably get one , the 42g10 plasma is great for sd in my opinion ,of the lcds, the sony w5500 is said to be very good too , samsung 40b650 , philips 42 or even 47pfl7404 are all within your budget , best to go and check them out , if you do , dont be seduced by the really bright lcds in store , when you get one home you will probably end up using the movie , cinema preset , which wont be as punchy , but will give a more natural picture , by the same token , plasmas dont look their best instore , due to the bright lighting and the tendency of salespeople to have them set to shop (way to bright) settings , again , once in your living room , properly set up , a plasma will look much better , if you like watching movies , with the lights dimmed , or even off , a plasma may be more suitable , a plasma also arguably looks more like a crt .. hope that helps ...

also , any of the above would be great for bluray , hd , and dvds upscaled on a ps3 or bluray player , and the picture would be much better than a crt with hd ... sd is also catching up with crts on hdtvs , nearly on a par in my opinion ...

 

[Alec]

maxflinn:its hard to advise whats best for someone , im not even 100% sure i want a plasma , although ill probably get one , the 42g10 plasma is great for sd in my opinion ,of the lcds, the sony w5500 is said to be very good too , samsung 40b650 , philips 42 or even 47pfl7404 are all within your budget , best to go and check them out , if you do , dont be seduced by the really bright lcds in store , when you get one home you will probably end up using the movie , cinema preset , which wont be as punchy , but will give a more natural picture , by the same token , plasmas dont look their best instore , due to the bright lighting and the tendency of salespeople to have them set to shop (way to bright) settings , again , once in your living room , properly set up , a plasma will look much better , if you like watching movies , with the lights dimmed , or even off , a plasma may be more suitable , a plasma also arguably looks more like a crt .. hope that helps ...

Cheers. You've echoed my general thoughts so far actually.

Just edited my previous post if you fancy a quick look.

 

[Anonymous]

al7478:
And i thougfht this would be a popular one.

EDIT - mind, it opens up the choice more if i look at HD ready sets too. This makes me worry tho, that it wouldnt show blurays to their best. But would the biggest improvement come from the full hd, or the 42 inches...?
i dont see the point of getting a hd ready or 720p tv , at 42inches or maybe 40 , watching from 9ft sd will look fine once the tv is set up right , this is crucial though , with so many options now on tvs , its easy to get it wrong , and end up with a poor picture , i know from experience , i got a 46b650 friday night , and it took me 6 or 7 hours , spent looking for settings online , and tinkering with them , before i got a good (very good actually) picture , and yes , full hd is better for blurays than hd ready , even if only marginally at 40-42inches ...

 

[Alec]

Thanks again. Just need a few more people to say that and i may not even bother to wait til next years...

Now, for a friend, what do people think SD would look like on a 40-42" TV from around 6 foot away...?

 

[simonlewis]

I sit about 6ft away from my 46" panny plasma, most of the time the picture is perfectly acceptable but at other times it's just a bit blurry.

 

[Alec]

Thanks Slewis.

 

[Alec]

Saw the TX-42G10B and the S10B today, and im considering it even more. Considering the positioning of the connections on teh rear of both these sets, i had thought the Q-TV2 would fit better, leaving leads exposed, but im not so sure now. Does anyone have any experience of both together...?

 

[Alec]

Have to admit I thought more would come along and say "yeah, go for it". One person (not here as you can see) has said SD would probably suffer in comparison to my current set.

Ah. Thought i would tell you all I'm considering at least 2 specific models, but I did that in my last post it seems.

EDIT - my point in my OP about wanting it to be better with Bluray is based on my comparison of TDK on DVD and bluray, wher ei failed to see much difference. Should i have seen one on my size screen? Do i just have an exceptionally good upscaler in my BD35...?

 

[Alec]

Awww! Why oh why must they still put the 3rd HDMI on the side?!?!?! Its ugly and just a silly thing to do, Panasonic! Yes, you! And next time, please put the headphine socket on the back, so that if i want to connect speakers (and be able to use my Sky remote's volume buttons), it wont look so awful!

Yeah, OK, I'm just venting now out of boredom. But i dont feel any better.

EDIT - Ahem. HeadphOne socket.

 

[Anonymous]

did you get the g10 then ?? im getting mine tmw , ill post my thoughts then ..

 

[Alec]

No, i havent got one yet, im really wavering. Let me know how you get on.

I must confess, i cant think how id use a 3rd hdmi, but still, i like complaining.

 

[John Duncan]

Right, am joining late here, but I had a 40" telly in the house for the weekend and even on SD - non-upscaling DVD player, Virgin Cable - it was pretty damn good (in fact the only HD source I have is Apple TV, which looked amazing,/i> on the Avatar trailer, for example). And I was sitting about the same distance away.

So if you're wavering, go for it.

 

[Anonymous]

absolutely right .. the 46g10 is now around £750 , 9 or 10ft would be fine for that too , on movie nights pull the sofa closer and stick on a bluray ... luuuuvly ....

 

[Alec]

JohnDuncan:Right, am joining late here, but I had a 40" telly in the house for the weekend and even on SD - non-upscaling DVD player, Virgin Cable - it was pretty damn good (in fact the only HD source I have is Apple TV, which looked amazing,/i> on the Avatar trailer, for example). And I was sitting about the same distance away. So if you're wavering, go for it.

Thanks JD. Now i think of it tho, i may connect a pc up in future by hdmi, so that side positioned hdmi is an irritation. Also, Ive just read in another thread that someone couldnt get the correct resolution while using the pc port on the back of their TV...

 

[Alec]

JD, has your sig changed and then changed back recently? Am i imagining that? If not, did you get yourself demoted?